Ivory, a 4-year-old Great Pyrenees, had already overcome so much when she walked into an adoption event in New York City the other day. The gentle giant was rescued back in September after being abandoned by her previous owners, and all she wanted was a loving
home to call her own.
But when the adoption event ended without a single application for Ivory, the poor girl started to lose hope that her biggest dream would come true.
When Ivory arrived at Rise and Shine Animal Rescue in September, she was in worse condition than the staff had initially realized. She was rescued alongside three of her puppies, and the entire little family desperately needed care.
“She was rescued from a farm in Tennessee as a breeding dog and came into care severely underweight and completely shut down,” Ryan Howard, founder of GetBuddy, told The Dodo.
The team was heartbroken for the downtrodden girl and her babies, promising to help her recover and find a loving home one day. Since the puppies were old enough to be on their own, they each secured foster homes through Rise and Shine.
Ivory also went to a foster home in Brooklyn, where she began safely gaining weight and learning to trust people again. After gobbling down one of her favorite meals for breakfast, Ivory would usually spend the rest of the day cuddling with her foster parents, soaking up all the love they had to give.
Then at dinnertime, she’d scarf down her food and return to bed for another round of cuddles. As the days passed, her personality started to bloom.
“[S]he loves resting her big head in someone’s lap,” Howard said.
After a little over a month in foster care, Ivory was finally healthy enough to be adopted. The Rise and Shine team soon arranged for her to attend a local adoption event, but they quickly realized that she was a bit too nervous to stand out in the chaotic environment.
“[S]he was very shy and stuck close to whichever foster was sitting with her,” Howard said. “She had trouble going up to people, as she has been very timid due to her past trauma.”
Ivory’s foster parents were heartbroken as attendees walked past Ivory without giving her a second glance. Sure, she was shyer than most dogs. But her foster parents knew just how sweet she was, and it devastated them to see her go unnoticed.
“Ivory watched as everyone passed by her at the adoption event,” GetBuddy wrote on Instagram. “As the day went on, we saw her lose hope.”
You can see footage of Ivory at the adoption event here:
Sadly, Ivory didn’t receive any applications after the adoption event, but her caregivers refused to give up on her. They returned home that evening for another round of cuddles before sharing the video of her at the adoption event online.
The video of Ivory at the adoption event soon went viral. And although many people expressed interest, there was one family who ended up being the perfect match for her.
“[W]e are the family that adopted Ivory,” John Calia wrote in a comment on Instagram. “She is the sweetest soul.”
Now Ivory has the home she’d always dreamed of and is having the best time getting to know her new family. One of her puppies also got adopted, while the other two are still looking for homes. And as rescuers work hard to find the perfect family for Ivory’s two babies, they’re overjoyed that their once-shut-down mom is finally living her best life.
“But being shy doesn't make her any less deserving of love,” GetBuddy wrote. “Sometimes, the quiet ones are worth getting to know.”
